Domestic Partnership

What is DP?

DP is the acronym for the domestic partnership policy as it applies to students. (Faculty and staff have a separate domestic partnership policy.) In the Oberlin College affidavit concerning relationships which students file with the Office of Residential Life and Services they declare that they are in a same-sex domestic partnership. By signing the affidavit, students affirm that they live together, share an emotional commitment, are one another's sole partner, and are responsible for their common welfare. This affidavit is notarized and signed under the penalties of perjury and the college's judicial system.

Students who receive Domestic Partnership status are regarded as married concerning housing and dining exemptions and policies.

What DP isn't:

Although the housing and dining requirements are the only college policies affected by marital status, DP is not for the purpose of manipulating the housing and dining requirements as determined by the Housing and Dining Committee, i.e., DP is not a "loophole" for exception to the Housing and Dining requirement. It is not for students who are in serious (engagement type) relationships, only those wishing to formalize and celebrate a life-long commitment to one another.

An abbreviated history of the DP policy at Oberlin

In 1992, a concerned group of students, faculty, and staff brought the issue of domestic partnership to the Housing and Dining Committee, which passed the policy that spring. The rationale and intent of the policy was one of equality, since the State of Ohio does not offer same gender couples the choice to legally marry. This policy intended to end that discrimination as it related to the policies of Oberlin College. The domestic partnership policy is Oberlin's official recognition of gay and lesbian marriages, and an attempt to address the institutional discrimination of governments which forbid same-sex marriage. This was widely understood and supported by the majority of the college community.

How do I support the DP policy?

The best ways to support the DP policy include knowing facts about what DP is, what it isn't, and who it is for; making decisions on this issue based on your personal integrity and sense of fairness; and encouraging others to do the same.

How do I apply for DP?

Make an appointment with the Assistant Director of Residential Life and Services for Assignments in the Office of ResLife in Stevenson Hall-Griswold Commons. There you will be given the following information: The procedure for applying for Domestic Partnership Same Gender Domestic Partnership Affidavit and supplemental document. Read the documents and discuss with your partner the implications of the decision. If you wish to proceed with this commitment, you should complete the affidavit, have it notarized and return it to the Assistant Director of Residential Education & Dining Services for Assignments.

What does the community say about DP?

"Abuse of this policy is an insult to our community [the LGBT community] and to our struggles to achieve a more just society for people of all sexual orientations."
--Heather West, OC '97.

"Abuse of DP is disrespect for queer relationships. Period."
--Chana Rothman, former co-chair of LGBTU, OC '98.